Smithville’s new city budget includes pay raises for the police department and a four percent increase for water and sewer rates.
Certified Municipal Finance Officer Ben Guffey said the city plans to adopt the state-certified property tax rate once it is released in the coming weeks. Guffey said public safety needed the extra money.
“Police department, what was passed, they’re going to get some new raises to kind of compete with the surrounding areas,” Guffey said. “Over at the fire department, we’re going to get some new fire hydrants, and then we’re going to do a little update and improvement to our training grounds that they have going on.”
Guffey said the decision to implement a new pay scale followed a study conducted by Police Chief Mark Collins that compared Smithville to 12 surrounding areas. Guffey said the study revealed the department ranked last in pay among the surveyed peer groups.
Guffey said the department lost three officers last year due to the lack of competitive wages.
“In that pay study, we ranked number 12 of 12 that he that he did the study with, and we were we were just really far behind,” Guffey said. “We hadn’t done (a pay raise) in a while, so it was just time to kind of catch up.”
Guffey said the city expects to lose approximately $1.2 million in cash flow from the water and sewer fund during the upcoming budget year. Guffey said the city is not eligible for a community development grant for water and sewer because its customer count exceeds the 2,500-person limit.
“Well, thankfully we’ve built up plenty of reserves as far as the water and sewer side goes, so we’ll be fine,” Guffey said. “But we’re we’re definitely keeping an eye on things.”
Guffey said the city has received an infrastructure planning grant to conduct a new water rate study. Guffey said a previous study recommended 4 percent annual increases over a period of several years.
“It’s a little too early to tell,” Guffey said. “I’m I’m not sure. We know there’s going to be another increase. The last one they recommended a four percent per year for I think it was four or five years.”
Guffey said the city is now applying for a Community Development Block Grant to fund paving projects since the water and sewer grant was unavailable. Guffey said the city is also monitoring potential projects at the airport, though no plans have been confirmed.
“The city’s still we’re doing everything we can for for the taxpayers and you know, we’re hopeful about the future and we’ll do everything we can for the benefit of the citizens,” Guffey said.
A public hearing for the budget is scheduled for the June meeting. Guffey said the second reading may be delayed until late June to ensure the state-certified tax rate is available, which would prevent the need for future budget amendments.
